Public Self-Focus and Sex Differences in Behavioral Self-Handicapping: Does Increasing Self-Threat Still Make it “Just a Man’s Game?”

The present study examined the effects of public self-focus and participants’ sex on self-handicapping behavior. Research in the area of self-handicapping has consistently shown that men alone tend to self-handicap behaviorally. Because conditions of public self-focus tend to make the evaluative implications of per formance more salient, the authors hypothesized that people would self-handicap more when they are self-focused (as opposed to other-focused). Men and women were presented with an important intellectual evaluation and were allowed to practice for the upcoming test as much as they wanted. Results showed that men self-handicap more when they are self-focused but women do not behaviorally self-handicap under self-or other-focused conditions. Heightened concern over possible failure in self-focused conditions appeared to be the critical mediator in encouraging self-handicapping behavior among men.